Gene Healy Warns: Nobody Wins When You Go Nuclear on Filibusters

With only
three Democrats defecting, on Thursday, the Senate, led by Harry
Reid, changed the rules to prevent filibusters of virtually all
presidential nominees except Supreme Court justices. By a simple
majority vote—rather than the two-thirds that Senate rules
require—Reid changed the rules mid-game, to prevent minority-party
“obstruction” of the president’s nominees. Gene Healy warns that
serious political movements shouldn’t try to knock down all the
barriers to power whenever they temporarily enjoy it, because
nothing is permanent in politics save the drive for more federal
power, and the weapons you forge may someday be detonated by the
other side.

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